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Archive - Archive 2004 - July 2013

Disabled man gets much-needed special wheelchair |29 November 2012

Disabled man gets much-needed special wheelchair

Mr Cedras in his new wheelchair in the presence of representatives of Sacos and Lions Club

Mr Cedras – who is paralysed from the waist down – cannot use normal wheelchairs as he cannot bend his knees, and so the Sacos insurance company, which is a partner of the hospital, decided to reach out to potential donors.

The Lions Club of Paradise Seychelles was brought in on the project and after searching around, managed to locate an Italian company called Sanacilia that makes such wheelchairs and other equipment like special beds for hospitalised people.

The club then made the necessary contacts to have the 86kg wheelchair – which is said to be worth some 10,000 euros – brought into the country from Italy, and Sacos covered all the air freights.

Speaking to Seychelles Nation, Marie-France MacGregor from the Lions Club said the club is all about working for charitable purposes, helping communities and people.

“A technician from the Sanacilia Company came to Seychelles to show Mr Cedras how to use the wheelchair, and the different uses he can get out of it,” she said.

Mr Cedras loves gardening and singing, and is very active in his garden, where he grows flowers, shrubs, fruit trees, vegetable plants, and even palm trees. He sometimes gets help from visiting children or other people from the community.

He expressed his happiness at receiving the wheelchair and showed media people how he uses it to move around his garden.

The public are invited to come and see Mr Cedras’ plants which are available for purchase.
Sacos general manager for marketing and public relations Jane Joubert said her company has adopted the garden and helps the residents to manage it, as well as provide plants and other things they need for their outdoor activities.

“Many of the residents say they want to be self-sufficient, and are only asking for a little help to be so,” she said.

“For example, a resident here is very proficient in making local brooms, and only needs some help to get the coconut leaves as raw material to be able to make the brooms. So we are appealing to the public to help in any way they can so that we have as many active residents as possible here.”

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